Rockwall Business Raises $30K For Tornado Relief Fund

Hundreds of T-shirts sell out in hours

When K.R. Hooks, of Rockwall, was presented with the idea of making shirts and finding sponsors to raise money for Rowlett, he had no hesitations.

Hooks, owner of Rockwall Sports Center, began contacting businesses that normally sponsor their teams. He soon had $9,000 worth of sponsors from local businesses.

Then the sports center joined forces with Qball Design in Rockwall and began working on a design for the shirt.

The two businesses decided on an appropriate phrase: Rise Together. The “R” stood for Rockwall and the “H” represented Heath. And, of course, the shirt had to show support for the Rowlett High School mascot with an eagle in the middle of the phrase.

Hooks’ business typically focuses on selling uniforms and equipment for sports, but this was different for the sports center. He wanted to be a part of showing the city of Rowlett how much Rockwall cared.

“There’s a lot of old-time Rockwall people who know Rowlett people,” Hooks said. “We grew up with Rowlett kids, played against them in sports. Everyone kind of knows everybody over here.”

As soon as the first 500 Rise Together shirts were printed, they quickly sold out. Hooks didn’t expect that kind of attention.

The demand for more shirts came in when the Rockwall Independent School District had a relief day for Rowlett on Jan. 29. Students and staff at Rockwall ISD schools were urged to wear the T-shirt, which meant they all had to purchase one. Orders picked up when the day was quickly approaching.

Hooks gave a nod to Samee’s Pizza Getti in Rockwall for donating money and manpower.

“Even after the shirts were done, we had businesses donate just to donate,” Hooks said. “They weren’t on the shirt, but they wanted to help.”